Worldviews
The Newsletter of the Apologetics Resource Center
May/June 2004

Why The Apologetics Resource Center?
There are times in our lives when it is important to stop and revisit our beginnings, to reframe our vision, to renew our calling. We are fighting the good fight on so many fronts and sometimes we need to hear again from our leaders, our co-laborers, our cheerleaders. The Apologetics Resource Center continues and seeks to expand its mission because it is a necessary and imperative work. Listen with us to a few of the many mentors we heard years ago when we began. We heeded their cry and we dare not falter now.

"Evangelism and apologetics are twin pillars upon which the outreach of the church is built. The two may be and must be distinguished, but they ought never be separated. They form a two-pronged attack against the fortress of hell and a double-front of defense against the onslaught of paganism…In history the task of apologetics has progressed to include both the defense of the Gospel against the attacks of alien philosophies and religions, and the positive construction of full-fledged Christian philosophy. In this regard apologetics serves the church not only in pre-evangelism, but in post-evangelism as well. It helps the believer counter the objections that are faced in a myriad of settings. It arms and equips the saints for the task of ministry. God has ordained both evangelism and apologetics, and the obedient church is faithful to both tasks."
R.C. Sproul, Tabletalk

"American Evangelicals face growing spiritual and cultural trouble. We have forfeited our influence within American society and are on the verge of forfeiting the vestiges of our biblical identity. The signs of this crisis, once veiled by superficial success, are now widely apparent.

Ineffective evangelism, a search for identity, playing the victim, a call to arms, withdrawal from engagement, a crisis of leadership--today America's first and once dominant faith community faces serious challenges… We evangelicals are acutely aware of our loss of influence in national life. We have demonstrated a variety of cultural responses in our attempt to regain cultural standing. Perplexed by pluralism and outraged at the growing secularity of society, we sometimes vacillate between a majoritarian activism or a victimized passivity, between an anti-modern protest against secular ideas or an uncritical acceptance of the tools of modernity."
John Seel, The Evangelical Forfeit:Can we Recover?

"The Bible commands, 'Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind' (Rom. 12:1-2). While much fuel has been spent on trying to get people to act like Christians, the Bible insists that we must first think like Christians. The transforming of our minds takes place not through magic, superstitious techniques, or superficial devotions, but through serious and sometimes difficult study. It requires that we know something about the Bible and the people to whom it is addressed, and that we know something about ourselves and the culture in which we live. It is dangerous to pretend one is not worldly when one refuses to critically examine the ways in which one has been influenced more by the spirit of the age than by the Spirit of Christ."
Michael Horton, Made in America: The Shaping of Modern Evangelism

"The church's singular failure in recent decades has been the failure to see Christianity as a life system, or worldview, that governs every area of existence. This failure has been crippling in many ways. For one thing, we cannot answer the questions our children bring home from school, so we are incapable of preparing them to answer the challenges they face. For ourselves, we cannot explain to our friends and neighbors why we believe, and we often cannot defend our faith. And we do not know how to organize our lives correctly, allowing our choices to be shaped by the world around us…Evangelism and culture renewal are both divinely ordained duties… If our culture is to be transformed, it will happen from the bottom up--from ordinary believers practicing apologetics over the backyard fence or around the barbecue grill."
Charles Colson & Nancy Pearcey, How Now Shall We Live?

"The ultimate question is not 'How is America?' but 'How is the church?'….The essential teaching of the early church regarding how Christians live in the world is captured in this threefold tension: (1) the church is separate from the world; (2) the church is nevertheless identified with the world; and (3) the church seeks to transform the world. These three motifs are especially helpful to our understanding of the place of the church in the postmodern world….Those who believe in a Christian responsibility to the world are sensitive to their calling to be 'salt' and 'light.'
They want to witness not only privately but also publicly through their lives and the values they express in every situation. Like Christ, the church will identify with the world, speak prophetically to the world, and minister to the world in a priestly fashion. It will do so by recognizing that Jesus is Lord over all systems, ideologies, and institutions."
Robert Webber, Ancient-Future Faith

The ARC is here to serve the body of Christ in those ways -- to know the truth, to articulate and defend the truth, to advance the truth, and to be the truth. We want to come alongside and help you redemptively engage people, ideas and institutions and see you grow in the process. We take seriously Jesus' words and warnings in Matthew 5:13-16 to be salt and light bearers. Call on us to help you, and consider helping us through your prayers and financial contributions.

Let the ARC Help You
Our Worldviews newsletter has several purposes. We want to alert Christians on important issues in the kingdom for prayer and action. And we want to help equip you for both discernment and engagement. Below are ways the Resource Center can equip you:

1. Tuesday night apologetics training: For local believers, we offer a Personal Ministry Training Track. During the month of June we are studying Love Your God With All Your Mind by J. P. Moreland. On June 29 we begin a stimulating and crucial survey of Systematic Theology with an apologetics emphasis (10 weeks). We are all called to be “rooted and grounded” in our faith. From an apologetics standpoint, we have to first know the faith before we can defend or advance it.

It has been painfully clear that too many Christians have thought theology irrelevant or boring. Far from it -- Jesus said that true believers will “abide in His word” and then they will “know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32; 2 Tim. 4:1-5). Other teaching sections which follow are Answering Common Objections to Faith, followed by Cults and World Religions, How to Understand & Interpret the Bible Correctly, and a section on Cultural and Ethical Issues.

Visit our website for a thorough description or call our office for directions (www.apologeticsresctr.org (205-403-0102). People begin arriving for training from 7-7:30 p.m. and the study continues until 9:00p.m.

2. Seminary Courses: Visit our website for a current description of apologetics courses offered at Birmingham Theological Seminary. Take them for credit or audit.

3. Classes in the local area: We are beginning to schedule classes with partner churches -- Briarwood Presbyterian, Oak Mountain Presbyterian, Covenant Presbyterian, and First Baptist Church of Birmingham. Again, visit our website for updated times, topics and locations.

4. Missions Trips: Pray for Clete as he travels in July to Tanzania, Africa with other pastors to address the theological cancer of the Name-It-and-Claim-It (Word-Faith) movement there. He will teach hundreds of pastors the truth about this blight. Many thousands of African Christians who are coming to America are infected with this heresy. Also, pray for Craig as he travels with his two daughters to Lima, Peru for a missions trip. This provides an opportunity to bring Christ to both the physical and spiritual needs of an oppressed people.

5. Call on us for free resource packets on hundreds of topics for your own edification and especially for friends, relatives, or other contacts you have that present a need to “give an answer” (1 Pet. 3:15) -- to “correct their error and teach the truth” (2 Tim. 2:23-26).

We have many topics available in packets including evolution vs. creation, homosexuality and same-sex marriage, Islam, Yoga, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, alternative medicines/treatments, Masonry, relativism, pluralism, Da Vinci Code, and many more. You can get a full listing of materials by visiting our website. If you do not see the packet you are looking for, please call our office as we probably have the information you need.

6. Pray with us as we help develop the ARC offices in Kansas City and Montgomery. Also, we are in urgent need of purchasing larger office space in order to effectively minister.

7. Mark your calendars now for a major conference we are putting together for this year’s Birmingham Conference on Theology and Life (October 8-10) at Briarwood Presbyterian Church. The theme is “The Christian and Church’s Role and Responsibility in Government, Politics, and Culture. We have the co-sponsorship of many wide ranging Christian groups and institutions. We will have several experienced representatives of different perspectives to present and interact on this important topic. More on it in our next issue of Worldviews, or visit our website for details.

Islam...Now What?
There are few better examples of "the frog in the kettle" phenomenon than the commercialism and political agenda of the media and how it influences dictates and thus shapes public opinion.

On local news stations, why are fires, accidents and crime scenes always the "top" stories? Why do Kobe Bryant, Lacy Peterson, and Michael Jackson dominate the airways? Who says the prison abuse story in Baghdad should run 24/7 with the inference that we lost the high moral ground and therefore is one more reason why we shouldn't be there? Why are people so easily manipulated? It has everything to do with a lack of discernment from a lack of a Biblical worldview -- or any consistent worldview for that matter.

For example, do we see wide coverage of Noble Peace Prize laureate Jose Ramos-Horta's message of his support of our coalition's response of rescuing people from tyranny, oppression, and genocide in Iraq and other countries? He sights other invasions of Uganda, Kosovo, Cambodia, and Afghanistan to overthrow barbaric, tyrannical regimes. He rightly concludes that to retreat will inevitably result in evil extremists winning and expanding at the expense of democracy and social order.

Or did the media give equal coverage to the victims of mutilation and torture of Saddam Hussein's political prisoners and the thousands of mass graves discovered? Did the media cover the latest (April) renewed attacks by Muslim radicals in Nigeria, killing eight pastors, hundreds of Christians, and destroying scores of Church buildings? More than 10,000 have been killed since 1999.

After the many attacks against the U.S. by Islamic radicals (militants, resurgents, Islamists) culminating in September 11th, the U.S. and England embarked on a struggle that is multifaceted, complex, and very difficult. Nevertheless, it is one of the most important struggles of this new century.

The troubling question is, do America and England have the moral roots and resolve to sustain this struggle? No matter the length and sacrifice involved, we as Christians have a unique and vital role to play in the monumental historical drama unfolding. How should we live and act, especially as Christian citizens in a democratic republic? Toward what goals should we encourage our government? In what ways should we directly participate? Our influence as salt and light needs to permeate the minds and hearts of people with the gospel and discipleship to strengthen the moral reserve and fiber of our culture. We also need to influence compassion, social justice and philanthropy in foreign and economic policy.

Christians need to intentionally and systematically develop a Biblical world and life view, which includes an understanding of our call in our occupation, neighborhood, city, family, government/politics and culture. Our own "holy war" is far different from Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism. To understand what it means to "love our neighbor" and to "love our enemies" is a challenge in this context. To understand Romans 13:1-4 and "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven," and "My kingdom is not of this world," is a challenge.

To understand that we cannot know God's will perfectly in the working out of His judgment upon the nations, including our own, is a challenge. America may be God's instrument to bring about peace and liberty, but an honest look at history reveals that even this great power, like all powers before, has succumbed to self-interest, to political and economic greed, and in our humanness, many do so again. Christians must accept the challenges and redemptively engage Muslims individually, Americans, ideas, and institutions, with vigor and humility. We must fight the good fight and keep the faith. Do you know how? Are you willing to trust Christ in this --the One to Whom and for Whom all things in heaven and earth are made (Rom. 11:36)?

Dominion Theology
by Keith Gibson

"For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God." Romans 8:19

Apologetics and discernment ministries have a wide range of responsibilities. It is our aim to assist the church in equipping Christians to enter the marketplace of religious ideologies within our culture and present a credible case for the truth claims of Christianity. This is a joyful task.

But passion for the truth of Christ also calls us, as faithful stewards of the grace of God, to confront errors arising within the body that have the potential to discredit the church in the eyes of the world and distort the gospel. This task is far less enjoyable but it is essential. We, as believers, cannot allow the message of the church to be diluted and distorted without sounding a cry of warning.

One such error that continues to trouble the church is dominion theology. If you are paying attention at all to the modern prophetic movement, you are aware that dominion theology, also known as "kingdom now theology" or the” manifest sons of God teaching” has permeated this branch of Christendom.

Dominion theology is not new. Its roots go back to William Branham in the late 1940's. The teaching was essentially dormant for a time but began to be resurrected in the 1980's and now influences a major segment of the Christian population through teachers like Mike Bickle, Rick Joyner, Paul Cain, Francis Frangipane, Jill Austin, Kim Clement and a host of others.

Essentially, dominion theology arises from a distorted interpretation of Romans 8:19 and a few other passages. It teaches that a perfected, glorified church will usher in the kingdom of God by taking dominion over the world. To this end, the church must be placed in order by coming under the authority of present-day apostles and prophets. Many of these prophets are foretelling a great civil war that will take place within the church between the "grays", associated with the brain or gray matter who focus on the scripture, and the "blues", those associated with the sky who are open to new revelation. This is a gross oversimplification and not all dominionists would accept all of these ideas, but these are many of the central tenets of the movement.

Associated with this major teaching are a host of other doctrines and practices necessary to facilitate the rise of this perfected body of Christ. These can be found interspersed throughout the writings and messages of those in the movement.

It is taught that Christ must be incarnated within the church before He can return. The church will literally become the fullness of Christ. Francis Frangipane states, "When the Spirit of Christ comes into the physical world, He must enter through a physical body…When Christ first entered our world as a child, it was Mary whom God chose to give Christ birth….God is preparing us as He did Mary to give birth to the ministry of His Son. Even now, in the spiritual womb of the virgin church, the holy purpose of Christ is growing, awaiting maturity; ready to be born in power in the timing of God….the virgin Church is 'in labor and in pain to give birth,' (Rev. 12:1-2)…I say to you, once again, the virgin is with child. Before Jesus Himself returns, the last virgin Church shall become pregnant with the promise of God. Out of her travail, the Body of Christ shall come forth, raised to the full stature of its Head, the Lord Jesus. Corporately manifested in holiness, power and love, the Bride of Christ shall arise." (Francis Frangipane, In the Presence of God, 1994, emphasis mine) But it must be noted that, in context, the manifestation of the sons of God spoken of in Romans 8 does not occur until the redemption of the body at the resurrection. The scriptures are clear that it is Christ who brings the kingdom, not the church.

Much, though not all of the modern emphasis on spiritual warfare has its root in dominion theology. Dominionists believe that in order for God to move, the heavens must be cleared and opened. It is therefore necessary for believers to discern the territorial demons over their cities, engage in spiritual mapping, claim the gates of their cities, bind these demonic forces, etc, etc. The list is endless. One of the newest versions of this is a teaching by Jill Austin, Mike Bickle and others that the church must pray for a "breaker anointing" defined as a "catalytic deposit of the Holy Spirit where eternity breaks through into the natural realm. It is a holy invasion where the gates of heaven are opened!" (Jill Austin, The Breaker Anointing--A Holy Invasion Where Eternity Breaks Through, www.elijahlist.com) This teaching is based on a bizarre interpretation of Micah 2:13. One also wonders how it is possible to have a "catalytic deposit" of a person such as the Holy Spirit.

Space will not allow for a discussion of other doctrines such as the restoration of the tabernacle of David, prophetic worship, the Zadok priesthood, judicial intercession and so on.

I am grateful to those in the movement for a renewed call to the church for prayer, worship and ministry to the poor. However, there are several causes for deep concern including:

1. Neglect of the word. The church is woefully illiterate when it comes to the scripture. The modern prophetic movement, instead of calling people to the scriptures, distracts them from the sure foundation into supposed revelations God is giving today. But Paul said that it is by the scriptures that "the man of God is perfected, thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Tim. 3:16-17)
2. Misuse of the Word. Modern prophetic teachers are poor handlers of the Bible, playing fast and loose with the text in order to justify their doctrines.
3. Misguided activity. Instead of involving Christians in praying and laboring in Biblical means that God can truly bless, Christians are being led into a host of non-Biblical activity. Jim Goll tells Christians that they must discern the demonic enemies opposing them, then they are to bring them to the courtroom of heaven and lay out a reasoned case against these thieves. They are then to petition God for "the appropriate amount of compensation that is due to the same degree as the offense." Then God punishes this demonic entity and blessings flow. (Jim Goll, A New Intercessory Assignment: Judicial Intercession, May 2004, www.elijahlist.com) Even if one assumes that the book of Daniel teaches the concept of territorial demons, which is dubious, where does the scripture teach by precept or example that we are to do any of the things advocated by warfare teachers like Goll in order to deal with them?
4. Exaltation of man. For all the talk about the need for humility, there is a tremendous elevation of men within the movement. These are the true super apostles. They will do exploits greater than those in the book of Acts. God waits for man before He can act.
5. Frustration. What happens when the prophets are wrong? On January 13, 2004, Kim Clement prophesied that Osama Bin Laden would be uncovered within 35 days. Both the prophecy and Clements attempt at an explanation can be found at elijahlist.com. Chuck Pierce said that when he was in Washington for the national day of prayer, God told him to ask for hail stones as a confirmation of the prophetic word. He claims that by the end of the day, the city was covered with hail. The only problem is, that on the day in question,
May 4, 2004, D.C. reported no precipitation. At some point, many of these people will grow tired of being misled. What will happen to them then? How does the church appear in the eyes of the world?
6. Neglect of Christ. For all of the talk about Jesus and love for Him within this movement, the real longing that comes across in the writings and messages is a desire for power and signs. Jesus does not appear to be sought for who He is as God and Savior but for the power He can bring to the church. This is the most tragic loss of all.

The American Reflection
A crucial question is does the United States have a culture capable of sustaining and winning a war against committed Islamists? I mentioned the desperate attempts of the liberal media to irresponsibly plot to undermine the Bush campaign. They did it in Vietnam. The 60's counterculture headed by Hollywood, liberal academia (partly due to the retreat and shutting out of Christians), and the entertainment industry led the way to defeat and the domino effect afterward.

Now the anti-war movement is in revival. The 60's counterculture has come of age. When the Church retreats and becomes gradually more conformed to the world values of relativism, consumerism and narcissism, we lose our voice, resolve, and influence. We become marginalized. No culture has lasted long without a religious based moral foundation.

The good news is that greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world. He has told us, and therefore it is true, that we are called to be the salt and light of the world. He calls and sends us to engage with Him and there will be redemptive effects. But if we do not engage out of our love for Him, then the lamp will be removed from the lampstand (Rev. 2:1-5).

So what does the changing complexion of the U.S. church look like? Unfortunately, three of the four largest churches in the U.S. are heretical, reflecting the hedonistic, consumeristic profile of our culture. They are Joel Osteen’s Lake wood Church in Houston, TX (25,000 people), Creflo Dollar’s church in Georgia (23,000), and T.D. Jakes’ (18,000). These are Word-Faith prosperity churches and Jakes’ has a Oneness Pentecostal view of the Trinity.
Two recent news stories in Birmingham featured two rapidly growing churches, both of which are prosperity churches. One is a rural mega-church, Word Alive International Outreach, which draws 2,500 each week. It was established in 2000 by the former assistant to Benny Hinn. Interestingly , they do not have church in July, as “people are very busy then.”

The second church is Faith Chapel Christian Center in rural Wylam. Begun in 1981, it now has 4,000 members, a $15 million worship center and plans to add five smaller interconnected domes at $16.5 million, which includes a twelve lane bowling alley, a smoke and alcohol free night club, indoor playground, fitness center, basketball court, skating rink, aerobics area and banquet facility. They just hosted Word-Faith charlatan Fred K. C. Price as a guest.

We will continue to exercise our prophetic voice, exposing these heresies, and writing responses to the print media, but more importantly, exhorting other Christians to engage people, ideas, and institutions redemptively. In that context, we also exhort the Body to study the Scriptures for personal discernment and growth.

Eurabia?
This was the title of a thought provoking and hopefully motivating article in the New York Times recently (04/04/04). The article began with an Edward Gibbon's quote from his Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, where he mused that if the Muslims had not been stopped by the French at Tours (732 a.d.) and the Ottoman advance stopped at Vienna in 1683, that the Koran would be taught at Oxford, and England's pulpits would reflect the revelations of Muhammad. A fanciful fiction? Two years ago, Pat Buchanan published The Death of the West, prophesying that declining European fertility and the increased immigration and fertility of Muslims, could turn “the cradle of Western civilization into its grave.”

But let’s look at the reality. Europe’s demographic decline has gone from 14% of the world’s population to 6% in the last 100 years. By 2050 it will be at 4%. The median age of Greeks, Italians and Spaniards is projected to exceed 50 by 2050. One of three will be over 65.

Economically, Europeans must seek for and tolerate marked immigration. And where is it coming from? Europe’s fastest growing population are Muslims -- Muslims on a mission. Marriage in Scandinavia is in significant decline. Europe is already post-Christian, with fewer than 10 % attending church. Only 7% of professing Christians in the UK attend church. The same France who stood at Tours has now pulled out of Iraq.

Islam was new in the 1980’s and 90’s. Because of changes in immigration laws, the American Muslim community grew much larger (now 6 million and growing). Most Muslims coming here were initially from Pakistan, India and Bangladesh, and not Arabs. But that has changed. Saudi Arabians and the Wahhabis Sunnis decided to create an American Muslim community, creating a system of organizations that would teach in the schools (madrassas) and mosques, and speak for the Muslim community to the media. The moderate Muslims have been largely intimidated into silence. They are bent on converting and indoctrinating nominal Muslims.

One of the problems is that indifferent or nominal Muslims often are moved toward more radical Islamic support because of the immorality they encounter here. They are taught to blame Western “imperialism” for hording or withholding the technology that their legend tells them they were leaders in developing.

Christian Optimism
1. We must intentionally reach out to and build relationships with Muslims locally. We need to wage peace on local Muslims.
2. We must pray for and support missionaries to Muslim countries. Indonesia, for example, the largest populated Muslim country, has large numbers of Muslims coming to Christ.
3. The gospel is the power of salvation to even the most stubborn, the most lost. Christ will save those whom He has chosen -- from all the nations.

How Watching TV Can Boost Your Apologetic
By Rev. Vic Minish

When one checks out at the grocery store, he or she is bombarded by magazines that pledge to offer "secrets" to a better marriage, a more complete understanding of how to rear children, a better and more youthful physique, ad absurdum. Television is much the same. Every news and investigative show promises to bring the ignorant into the light. The Christian response to all of these things is usually one of "Don't read it, don't watch it." And there is indeed a case for the avoidance of certain things, where the practice of such a thing is in itself sin, when a practice leads a person to sin against their conscience, or when a practice will cause others to sin. Yet, there is also the case for the taking in, dissecting of, and enjoyment of the culture that surrounds us. There is not a great distance between apologetics (in practice) and watching television. I believe the practice of watching television, movies and otherwise staying in touch with the cultural fodder of our day is beneficial to apologetics.

Sharing the good news and defending the faith requires at least two things: a person sharing and one to listen and dispute. That is, there must be at least two people who care enough to argue. Problematic to our contemporary culture is that the good news doesn't resonate as good for anything to many non-believers, and it is often greeted with ambivalence. It is possible for one to go entirely through a "gospel presentation" with someone and have them stare blankly and perhaps respond, "great" with the tone of great disinterest. The categories and concepts that Christians use to think and communicate are often foreign to the non-Christian. For example, the Biblical concept of sin, which we often try to explain as a lack of perfection has very little connection with a culture that has no equivalent moral category, and only thinks in terms of physical and mental health. Like the neo-pragmatist philosopher Richard Rorty, many within our culture simply think the search for meta-physical certainties is simply a kind of neurosis left over from bygone days.

Americans have moved (in many ways) away from the presuppositions of the Judeo-Christian worldview. However, Americans still love TV and movies. It is the common currency of ideas these days. Write a philosophy book and no one cares. Make a film with underlying ideas, and hearts and minds will be won. Films like Pulp Fiction (nihilism), Fight Club (nihilism with self destruction), and The Matrix (a pluralistic mix), not to mention the Star Wars (Buddhism and Hinduism) films have been defining a generation's philosophy of life to a far greater extent than the contemporary church. Popular television shows such as Friends, Seinfeld, Frasier, The Simpsons, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer are all important works (important because they have really shaped the worldview of their viewers, not because they have some transcending value). Quote the Bible or a classic of literature and only a few from the 30 something's on down to the current generation of teens will have any idea what you are talking about. Quote a line from a movie or any of the countless episodes of the programs listed above and the point can be easily made.

Examine three examples. First, remember Elaine's boss in the Seinfeld sitcom, Mr. Peterman? He was an empty soul. Peterman's life consists of nothing more than the vignettes he uses to sell the clothing in his catalog. In one episode he buys JFK's golf clubs and a piece of wedding cake from the English royalty. He works hard to create the life he wishes he had, yet he does not have it. Peterman is literally nothing though he possesses much. Seinfeld is the empty side of Ecclesiastes as is the current trend of voyeuristic shows running in prime time: Popstar, American Idol, Average Joe, Fear Factor, and The Apprentice. These shows are popular because the watching American public is looking for meaning in their lives. They have counted their own lives hopeless and so they live vicariously through the participants of reality TV and “The Fabulous Life of Hollywood Stars." Some of course will disagree with this interpretation but that is what speculation is all about, it has no other redeeming value. But where there are problems, there are also hosts of opportunities.

The film The Matrix often has lines that can be reshaped to reach such a culture. Morpheus explains to Neo what the matrix is, "It is all around us. Even now in this very room. You can see it when you look out your window, or when you turn on your television. You can feel it when you go to work, go to church, when you pay your taxes. It is the world that has been pulled over your eyes, to blind you from the truth…that you are a slave, Neo. Like everyone else, you were born into bondage, born into a prison you cannot smell, taste, or touch." Is this not a fair picture of our nature without Christ?

Consider Quentin Tarentino's Pulp Fiction. Two professional murderous gangsters have avoided death in a shoot out. One believes God has given him a miracle. Their conversation digresses and at last one says, "Stop talking like that!" to which the other responds, "If you find my answers frightening, Vincent, you should cease askin' scary questions."

The non-Christian heart betrays their mind. As St. Augustine said, "Our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you [God.]" Yet the non-believing mind suppresses the truth in unrighteousness. It is ours to ask the scary questions and demonstrate to the non-believer that his life is painfully inconsistent. The medium for this is easily TV and film. Mine is a plea for two things. First, for Christians to be engaged with contemporary culture in a way that is not syncretistic or condemning. And second, that Christians should use items and issues from contemporary culture as an analogy to the gospel. It is important to add one comment concerning this second plea. I do not mean by that pastors and youth workers should use TV and film as illustrations. That would be the wrong way around. I am here referring to the way we speak to those outside of our "Christianese" language and sub-culture. One will notice that Paul never quotes Scripture in his discourse to the pagans in Acts 17. Instead he preached the gospel to them using analogies of which they were already familiar.

Several authors have written books that demonstrate the philosophical questions that are brought up or developed by contemporary television and movies. There is a six volume series on popular culture and philosophy by Open Court Publishers that seeks to introduce the serious study of philosophy to a lay public. Christians should take the hint. Here is a point of contact.

There will be some who will read what I have written and consider that watching television is nonetheless a harmful, fruitless, and dubious practice for Christians. Indeed, it is not for the weak of heart. Inasmuch as the gospel must continue to be explained and defended, we should remember that very few are interested in discussing the intricacies of the kalam cosmological argument, but almost everyone has followed a sitcom or seen a popular film.

Letters
Thank you for calling me earlier in the week and faxing your information to me. I truly appreciate your ministry and wish the ARC was here in New York so that I could benefit from the classes that you offer. Is there a book or resource that I could pass on to both the teacher and principal on this issue ...that could give them a different perspective on why Yoga, Tai Chi and other New Age type practices are inappropriate in the school? Thank you so much for your support and insight. I look forward to reading your book when it arrives.
New York

Dear ARC,
This is a student from Oakwood Baptist Church. During the apologetics conference we hosted, I was able to attend your classes on Refuting Evolution, and proving the Bible to be factual. Both were inspiring and interesting. I am a high school student who has a few friends that don't believe in God or the Bible. Your classes will help my witness to others as well as my own faith development. Thank you for your time and your devotion to God. May He bless your efforts and spreading of His Word.
Kansas City, MO

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